On May 5 the European Commission issued its proposal to create wide-ranging powers to tackle non-European subsidies which may distort competition in Europe. The proposal introduces three different regimes:

– An ex officio investigation up to 10 years after the subsidy was received.
– A mandatory notification regime for M&A if one of the parties is established in the EU.
– A mandatory notification for companies bidding in certain public procurement procedures.

The proposal will now go into the legislative process which will no doubt spur significant debate since it reflects a growing protectionist sentiment in the EU—but may at the same time be seen as a threat to incoming foreign investment.